Contract Marriage: Rewritten - Chapter 32
Chapter 32
Translator: Yonnee
—
‘That’s fortunate for me.’
Laniakea sat up and moved toward the head of the bed. Attached to the headboard, which had an antique design, were several drawers. The first person to have used this bed must have been someone who liked to keep many items close by.
Laniakea placed her hand on the topmost drawer. With a soft srrk sound, the drawer slid out slightly.
“Magic really is amazing, no matter how many times I see it.”
Though most of its power had faded over time, there were still items within the imperial palace that the emperors of the past had commissioned mages to craft. This bed was one of them.
She touched the drawer again, and it slid back in with a smooth sound.
It was said that only the master of the imperial palace could open and close these drawers. The ones the bed acknowledged as rightful masters of the palace were the emperor and the empress.
Laniakea had wondered if there might be some magical ritual to perform in front of the bed for it to recognize her, but the drawer had opened the moment she touched it.
Strangely enough, the bed had acknowledged Laniakea as its new master the moment the former empress left the imperial palace.
Fascinated, Laniakea opened and closed the drawer a few more times before retrieving something stored inside.
It was a single sheet of paper. The thick, high-quality parchment was the kind used for official imperial documents.
“But… is it really okay for me to accept this?”
It was something Hyperion had suddenly given her two days ago when he came to see her.
* * *
At first, she hadn’t known what the paper was, but she soon realized it was a special clause to be added to their marriage contract.
The contents of the clause were simple.
1- The two parties agree to do their utmost for one year to produce an heir to the imperial family.
2- Once an heir is born, the emperor will fulfill all promised support to the empress without fail.
And the promised support was as follows.
1- The empress may freely travel and reside anywhere within the empire, including the imperial palace, and may own up to t̶w̶o̶ (̶2̶)̶ ten (10) properties of her choosing.
2- In addition to the basic living expenses required to maintain the empress’s dignity, a supplemental monthly allowance of o̶n̶e̶ h̶u̶n̶d̶r̶e̶d̶ (̶1̶0̶0̶ G̶)̶ ten thousand gold (10,000 G) will be provided. This will be paid for t̶e̶n̶ (̶1̶0̶)̶ y̶e̶a̶r̶s̶ a lifetime, starting from the day of ascension.
3- Beyond this, should additional support be necessary, the emperor promises to prioritize and address the empress’s requests above all else, so long as they do not interfere with imperial authority.
Laniakea stared for a long time at the crossed-out numbers.
When Hyperion had first brought the document, no matter how she looked at it, it seemed too heavily tilted in her favor. She had gone over it several times.
He had pointed to the blank spaces and told her to fill them in with whatever numbers she wished, without feeling pressured. The conditions already favored her, and now he was telling her to write in any numbers she wanted.
‘Is it really okay to do that?’
Being offered such favorable terms made her feel even more uneasy.
Still, there was no reason to reduce what she was being offered. After much hesitation, Laniakea wrote in slightly more generous terms than she had originally intended.
Two homes of her choice and 100 gold per month.
Even with just that, she could enjoy the kind of life she desired for the rest of her days. And if anything was lacking, the clause said additional support would be provided.
So, with a bit of greed, she filled in the numbers and handed the paper back to Hyperion. His eyebrow twitched. Then, in a low voice, he questioned her,
“These terms? Are you serious?”
“Pardon? Ah, do you think it’s too much? Then I’ll just go with one house…”
Frightened, Laniakea quickly tried to revise the numbers, but Hyperion grabbed a pen, drew sharp lines through the ones she had written, and wrote in new ones.
Ten homes of her choosing. A monthly allowance of 10,000 gold.
Laniakea blinked as she accepted the paper he handed back. Her eyesight seemed fine, so why did the numbers look so strange?
“Ten homes? Even two seems like too many…”
“You’ll need a summer and winter villa, a residence in the capital, and at least a few in the provinces, won’t you?”
“I… suppose so?”
His voice was so calm, as if stating the obvious, that Laniakea found herself nodding before she even realized it.
“But still, the monthly amount seems excessive…”
Ten thousand gold? That was more than enough to live off for a year outside the palace. And he was offering that every month?
A vision of herself swimming atop a pile of gold coins flashed through her mind.
Such extravagance and indulgence… was that really okay?
As she stared helplessly at the increased numbers, Hyperion once again spoke in his usual, detached tone.
“That amount isn’t even a tenth of the empress’s budget. If anything, I should raise it…”
“No! No, it’s fine!”
She hurriedly grabbed his hand as he reached for the pen again.
“……!”
Hyperion jerked his hand back as if it had touched fire.
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